The present invention relates to a control device for a boat engine, and more particularly, to a device for controlling both clutch and throttle of the boat engine with a single lever.
In a general boat, in order to effectively utilize a space in the boat, a passage or passages leading to a front part of the boat are provided on both sides of a operator's seat or on the center of a operator's cab. In order to secure the passage spaces, a dashboard with narrower width is suitably employed. Since a number of meters and switches are mounted on the dashboard, it is strongly demanded to reduce the width of the engine control device to be mounted on the dashboard.
Moreover, push-pull control cables for operating a clutch and a throttle (hereinafter, referred to as "clutch cable" and "throttle cable") extend downwardly from the bottom of the control device. If bending radii of the control cables are small, required operating force becomes larger and the control cables tend to be easily damaged. Therefore, the height of the control device is also required to be shortened.
By the way, there has been known a conventional control device for a boat engine, having two operating levers as shown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11. In the device, two operating levers 102 and 103 are supported on a single shaft 101, and a clutch arm 104 and a throttle arm 105 are connected to the operating levers 102 and the operating lever 103, respectively. Further a clutch cable 106 and a throttle cable 107 are connected to the clutch arm 104 and the throttle arm 105, respectively.
However, since the two levers 102, 103 are arranged in a line on the single shaft 101 in the above device, the width W of the device becomes thick.
Therefore, another device having a single lever for controlling both clutch and throttle is proposed (for example, see Japanese examined patent model publication No. 9796/1979).
The above-mentioned device, as shown in FIGS. 12 to 14, comprises a disk 111 for operating a throttle cable and a half discal plate 112 for operating a clutch cable. Each shaft 113, 114 of the disk 111 and the plate 112 are rotatably supported on a housing 115. An operating lever 110 is fixed to an end of the shaft 113 and is arranged at the side of the housing 115. A set of inward teeth 118 engaging with a pinion 116 is formed on a side surface of the operating disk 111, and a set of outward teeth engaging with another pinion 117 is formed on a side surface of the operating plate 112. By means of the gear mechanisms (two sets of teeth 118, 119 and pinions 116, 117), rotation of the operating disk 111 can be transmitted to the operating plate 112 through the pinions 116 and 117.
A clutch cable 120 is connected to a lateral side end of the operating plate 112 by utilizing a hole 112a, and a throttle cable 121 is connected to a pin 122 fixed to the lower end of the operating disk 111. When the operating lever 110 is moved in the direction of arrow A or B, the clutch cable 120 is moved in the direction of arrow F or R to provide change of modes, i.e. between a forward mode and a reverse mode. When the operating lever 110 is further moved in the same direction, the throttle cable 121 is moved in the direction of arrow D or E, i.e. to the right side position (shown by imaginary line) or to the left side position (not shown) from the center position (shown by real line) of the disk 111.
In the above-mentioned device, in either case that the operating lever 110 is moved in the direction of arrow A or in the direction of arrow B, the throttle cable 121 must be moved in the same direction (upward) with the same stroke. Therefore, the end of the throttle cable 121 is connected on the center and lower end of the operating disk 111.
In the above-mentioned conventional device, since the operating lever 110 is fixed to the end of the shaft 113 and is positioned at the lateral side of the housing 115, the device is thick. Moreover, since the throttle cable 121 is connected at the center and lower end of the operating disk 111 and extends dawnwardly from the lower end of the operating disk 111, the height of the device is large. Further, when the lever 110 is operated, the throttle cable 121 is shaken in the direction of arrow S with small carvature radius as shown in FIG. 13. Therefore, the cable is damaged by repetitive flex, especially in a boat having a narrow lower space. Further, since the shaft 113 must be positioned upper than the dashboard 100 to rotate the operating lever 110 freely, the height of the portion projecting from the dashboard is large.
As mentioned above, the conventional device either having two levers or one lever has defects that the size of the device is large and the cable tends to be easily damaged.
The object of the present invention is to provide a control device in which width and height are small, height of the portion projecting from the dashboard is also small, and the cable is not easily damaged.